Time
"Time" is a song by Cloudsdale synthrock band the ALPS. It is included as the fourth track on The Dark Side of the Moon (2018) and was released as a single in Amareica. Lead guitarist Naz wrote the lyrics and the music is credited to all four band members. Drummer Jonathan Teal contributes the lead vocals. The lyrics deal with the passage of time – time can slip by, but many people do not realise it until it is too late. Naz got the idea when he realised he was no longer preparing for anything in life, but was right in the middle of it. He has described this realisation taking place at ages 25 and 26 in various interviews. It is noted for its long introductory passage of clocks chiming and alarms ringing, recorded as a quadrophonic test, not specifically for the album. Composition "Time" is in the key of F-sharp minor. Each clock at the beginning of the song was recorded separately in an antiques store. These clock sounds are followed by a two-minute passage dominated by Teal's drum solo, with rototoms and backgrounded by a tick-tock sound created by Frosty picking two muted strings on his bass. With Naz singing lead on the verses and with Teal singing lead on the bridges and with all four members of the band providing backup vocals, the song's lyrics deal with Naz's realization that life was not about preparing yourself for what happens next, but about grabbing control of your own destiny. "The drums used on the Time track are roto-toms. I think we did some experiments with some other drums called boo-bans, which are very small, tuned drums, but the roto-toms actually gave the best effect." - Jonathan Teal According to an interview in 2039, Naz had been using a Lexicon PCM-70 to store the circular delay sounds heard in "Time", which could duplicate the kind of echo he used to get from his old Binson echo unit. The verse chords cycle through F♯ minor, A major, E major, and F♯ minor again. During this section, Naz's guitar and Speed's keyboards are panned to the extreme right and left of the stereo spectrum. Naz sings lead during this section. The bridge section, with Teal singing lead, has a notably "thicker" arrangement, with the ALPS singing multi-tracked "oohs" and "aahs" throughout, and Naz singing harmony with Speed in the second half. The chords of this section are D major seventh to A major seventh, which is repeated. The D major seventh, with the notes of D, F♯, A, and C♯, can be heard as an F♯ minor chord with a D in the bass, fitting the song's overall key. The second half progresses from D major seventh to C# minor, then B minor to E major. The first bridge leads to a guitar solo by Naz, which plays over both the verse and bridge progressions. The solo is followed by another verse sung by Naz. When the bridge is repeated, it does not conclude on E major as before. Instead, the B minor leads to an F major chord, while Frosty's bass stays on B, resulting in an unusual dissonance as a transition to the key of E minor for "Breathe (Reprise)". Reception In a contemporary review for The Dark Side of the Moon, an author of Rolling Stone gave "Time" a positive review, describing the track as "a fine country-tinged rocker with a powerful guitar solo by Naz". Personnel * Naz – electric guitars, lead vocals (verses), backing vocals * Teal – drums, rototom, lead vocals (bridges) * Rainbow Speed – Farfisa organ, Wurlitzer electric piano, EMS VCS 3 * Frosty – bass guitar